Uniform Crime Report/ National Crime Victimization Survey: Strengths and Weaknesses of These Reports
- The Uniform Crime Reports (UCR) were developed by the International Association of Chiefs of Police in order to provide nations with uniform crime statistics at the end of the 1920s;
- The FBI became responsible for gathering, analyzing, presenting, and archiving data from Uniform Crime Reports in 1930; and nowadays, more than 17,000 agencies contribute reliable information to FBI;
- The objective of UCR is to present and evaluate a certain set of crimes and use this information in order to improve enforcement administration and management;
- National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS) is another program by the Bureau of Justice Statistics that presents valid information concerning the matter of criminal victimization, its characteristics, and consequences;
- Numerous assaults, rapes, burglary, and thefts are considered to be the major issues for consideration within the National Crime Victimization Surveys;
- The peculiar feature of NCVS is its focus on the impact of crimes and the description of possible offenders – such attention to characteristics and consequences should be helpful for the nation and prevent so frequent crimes;
- The strength of UCR is its possibility to protect the nation against possible terroristic attacks and other foreign threats and the major weakness of this program is its general purposes like bringing justice to all those, who may violate the law;
- The strength of the NCVS is to develop reliable information about victims, compare crimes, and analyze the consequences; however, its weakness is connected to its attention to numerous crimes at the same time.
Date Rape and Its Connection to Stranger/Statutory/Spousal Rape
- Date rape, also known as acquaintance rape is such kind of crime, committed by someone the victim knows or dates with (Basso, 2003, p. 235);
- Many people, usually young men, think that if they spend some money on dinner or presents, they have to have sex with their dates;
- Date rape has nothing in common with stranger rape, as the latter is forced sex by an absolutely unknown person;
- Statutory rape is one more sexual intercourse that happens between people, where one of them is much younger than the statutory sex; this type of rape is a bit similar to date rape, because the participants of these intercourses may know each other;
- Spousal rape is sexual intercourse that happens without the agreement of one of the spouses. It may be a kind of date rape when a spouse uses some power after a date in order to have sex without mutual consent.
Types of Date Rape Drugs
- Date rape drug is any possible drug that can promote the possibility of a sexual assault during or after a date rape;
- Drug abuse is regarded as one of the major threats for modern society (Adams, 2006), this is why it is crucially important to know some information about possible drugs before having a date with a person for the first time;
- GHB, Rohypnol, and Ketamin are three of the best-known date rape drugs, which are frequently used by the offenders;
- The effect of GHB is similar to the effect of alcohol and increases sex drive;
- The effect of Rohypnol, liquid ecstasy, lasts for about 12 hours and causes the loss of motor control, possible amnesia, and inability to coordinate;
- The effect of Ketamine, also known as K-hole or K-land, is strange enough: its users get a chance to feel that their own bodies are separated from their minds; they do not feel pain and do not comprehend that they are at risk;
- It is very easy to buy any date rape drug on the streets or even at some drugstores, this is why people should be careful while drinking or eating with an unknown and suspicious person.
Victim/Offender Relationship
- The victim/offender relationship is one of the most significant factors, which help to determine offender’s behavior at different stages of committing a crime;
- Usually, date rapes happen at victim or offender’s home, in cars, or at streets with few people, and each time, the rapist’s behavior is different before the attack;
- Environmental factors and victim’s condition play an important role in date rapes;
- Sometimes, in the case of date rape, victims may be viewed by society or jurors as responsible for assaults because of their inappropriate behavior, attitude, or hints;
- Victims are also viewed by offenders as one more opportunity to demonstrate own power and the ability to persuade;
Lots of problems may appear during date rape prosecutions: desire/necessity of a victim to remain unknown, victim’s personal condition, inability to analyze the psychological conditions of offenders and victims.
Reference List
Adams, C. (2006). Rohypnol: Roofies – the Date-Rape Drug. New York: The Rosen Publishing Group.
Basso, M. J. (2003). The Underground Guide to Teenage Sexuality: An Essential Handbook for Today’s Teens and Parents. Minneapolis, Minnesota: Fairview Press.